Vishwaroopam is a 2013 Tamil spy thriller film written, directed and co-produced by Kamal Haasan who also enacts the lead role. The film has Rahul Bose, Shekhar Kapur, Pooja Kumar, Andrea Jeremiah and Jaideep Ahlawat in supporting roles. Produced simultaneously in Hindi as Vishwaroop, the film features soundtrack composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, with lyrics by Vairamuthu and Haasan himself while Javed Akhtar translated them for the Hindi version.

Development of the project commenced after the release of Haasan’s Manmadhan Ambu (2010) when several of the crew were brought in from the United States to lend their technical expertise. The direction was taken over by Haasan from Selvaraghavan and reports indicating a comparison with several English films surfaced during the production. The first teaser was revealed in April 2012 and first theatrical trailer was revealed in June 2012. Vishwaroopam is the first Indian film to utilize the new Auro 3D sound technology. The film was also the first of its kind to release via direct-broadcast satellite, also known as direct-to-home (DTH), but after protests of theatre owners this plan was dropped.

The film released worldwide, excluding Tamil Nadu, on 25 January 2013 while the Hindi version was released on 1 February 2013. Legal controversies regarding the film’s portrayal of Islamism arouse as several Muslim groups protested the film’s release in Tamil Nadu, resulting in an official ban being imposed on the film in the state for 15 days by the Government of Tamil Nadu. The ban resulted in similar decisions being made in Sri Lanka and Malaysia while release was delayed in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka.

Despite the fragmented release, Vishwaroopam garnered generally favorable reviews from critics. Heeding to the requests of Muslim political groups, scenes perceived as controversial were muted, allowing the film for release on 7 February 2013 in Tamil Nadu. The film bagged the National Film Award for Best Art Direction, and Best Choreography in the 60th National Film Awards 2012